December 27, 1944 – April 15, 2004
Phyllis Dillon O.D. was born in Linstead, St. Catherine. She was influenced by American singers like Connie Francis, Patti Page and Dionne Warwick. Phyllis began singing in talent contests, and it was during a performance at the Glass Bucket Club in Kingston, Jamaica with the group The Vulcans, that Duke Reid’s session guitarist, Lynn Taitt, discovered Dillon.
She recorded for Duke Reid’s lucrative Treasure Isle recorded label in the late ‘60s and early ‘70s.
Phyllis was a master of the rocksteady sound, and created numerous hits. At the end of 1967, she moved to New York and the following five years she spent essentially living a double life.
She had a family and a career in banking in the United States, flying frequently back to Kingston to continue recording for Reid. She ended her recording career in 1971, but returned to the studio in 1998 with the resurgence of ska in the U.S.
Phyllis Dillon died in Long Island, New York, after a two-year battle with cancer, at the age of 59. She was posthumously awarded the Order of Distinction in 2009 by the Government of Jamaica.
Hits include:
- “Perfidia”
- “Why Did You Leave Me To Cry”
- “Don’t Stay Away”
- “Love The One You’re With”
…and others